LULULEMON has been hit with criticism after confirming that shoppers will face a price hike over the coming months.
The athleisure brand hit fans with the news during an earnings call on Thursday as it braces to be hit with tariffs after an already difficult quarter.
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“We experienced lower store traffic in the Americas, partially reflective of economic uncertainty, inflationary pressures, lower consumer confidence, and changes in discretionary spending,” CEO Calvin McDonald said as its stocks fell 22%.
The company highlighted numerous measures it will bring in to try to tackle the economic pressures it is facing – one of which will be raising prices.
“We are planning to take strategic price increases … on a small portion of our assortment, and they will be modest in nature,” chief financial officer Meghan Frank said.
She added that shoppers will see changed price tags in just a matter of weeks.
They will be going into effect around the end of the second quarter and going into the Q3.
As well as this, there will be ongoing negotiations with suppliers and other cost-cutting measures.
Last year the company reported almost half of it’s products were made in Vietnam and almost 30% of fabrics came out of China.
Shoppers who have already been vocal about Lululemon’s prices have warned that the price hike is a bad move.
“You better get it together. Lulu. Using tariffs as an excuse in your rest of the year outlook is not a smart move,” one shopper fumed on X.
“Amazon/Walmart tried this it didn’t go well. You’re Down 65$ today. Our family was a big lulu fan not so much anymore.”
They were replying to another angry customer calling out the chain for poor quality on a jacket they bought.
“So I jumped through your hoops and got a note pretty much saying you don’t stand by your quality like you used to,” they wrote.
“Very very disappointing given your pricing and marketing do not reflect this decline. Why should I buy @lululemon and not go to your competitors??”
The chain replied only to ask for a private message to discuss the quality issue further.
“Lululemon prices are insane,” another said just days before the earnings call announcement.
One even compared buying an item from the brand to putting “a down payment on a new car”.
SCOOP A DUPE
The additional pressures on shoppers’ wallets has seen many look out for alternatives that are more budget-friendly.
“$188 had me GAGGED, put that s*** back immediately,” one shopper said on X.
Another replied: “You could probably find the same thing on Amazon for 1/3 of the price”.
“That’s exactly what I’ll be doing,” the shocked shopper said.
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She won’t have to look far with Lululemon fans already sharing their favourite dupes.
“My favourite lululemon ‘dupe’ leggings are on sale! I own these in a few different colours – the pocketed ones are just as good too!” one wrote on Facebook.
She shared how she gets a dupe of the Lululemon Align High-Rise pant priced between $98 and $118 from Amazon.
The Sunzel Women’s Workout Leggings with a similar style and color options are much more affordable with a price range between $19 and $29.99.
“Absolutely love these! Great quality, so similar to lulu aligns but these are a third of the price!” one shopper said.
“Would definitely purchase these over the lulu ones, they are so soft and the fit is great and not sheer. Love them! Ordering more.”
Another delighted reviewer added that they are also “better than Victoria’s Secret leggings”.
Meanwhile, Costco is selling a $20 Lulu dupe that is over $100 cheaper.
Lululemon is just the latest in a slew of retailers to announce price increases as a result of President Trump’s trade tariffs.
Walmart and Target have both issued warnings to shoppers and a cosmetics company also announced a price change coming in this summer.
